Nasa observes meteors colliding with Saturn's rings

The first direct evidence of small meteors breaking into streams of rubble and crashing into Saturn's rings has been found by Nasa's Cassini spacecraft.
These observations make Saturn's rings the only location besides Earth, the Moon and Jupiter where scientists and amateur astronomers have been able to observe impacts as they occur, Nasasaid.
Studying the impact rate of meteoroids from outside the Saturnian system helps scientists understand how different planet systems in our solar system formed.
The solar system is full of small, speeding objects. These objects frequently pummel planetary bodies. The meteoroids at Saturn are estimated to range from about one centimeter to several meters in size.
It took scientists years to distinguish tracks left by nine meteoroids in 2005, 2009 and 2012.
Results from Cassini have already shown Saturn's rings act as very effective detectors of many kinds of surrounding phenomena, including the interior structure of the planet and the orbits of its moons.
For example, a subtle but extensive corrugation that ripples 19,000 kilometres across the innermost rings tells of a very large meteoroid impact in 1983.
"These new results imply the current-day impact rates for small particles at Saturn are about the same as those at Earth - two very different neighbourhoods in our solar system - and this isexciting to see," said Linda Spilker, Cassini project scientist at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.
"It took Saturn's rings acting like a giant meteoroid detector - 100 times the surface area of the Earth - and Cassini's long-term tour of the Saturn system to address this question," Spilker said.
The Saturnian equinox in summer 2009 was an especially good time to see the debris left by meteoroid impacts. The very shallow Sun angle on the rings caused the clouds of debris to look bright against the darkened rings in pictures from Cassini's imaging science subsystem.
"We knew these little impacts were constantly occurring, but we didn't know how big or how frequent they might be, and we didn't necessarily expect them to take the form of spectacularshearing clouds," said Matt Tiscareno, lead author of the study.
"The sunlight shining edge-on to the rings at the Saturnian equinox acted like an anti-cloaking device, so these usually invisible features became plain to see," he said.

Blogger Labels: Nasa,Saturn,rings,rubble,Cassini,spacecraft,observations,location,Earth,Moon,Jupiter,impact,Saturnian,system,planet,objects,planetary,size,Results,example,rates,Linda,Spilker,Propulsion,Laboratory,Pasadena,times,area,debris,clouds,pictures,science,Matt,Tiscareno,author,features,impacts,systems,meters,phenomena,particles,meteors,scientists,meteoroids,meteoroid,equinox

Unmanned Russian spaceship suffers mishap on way to ISS

An unmanned Progress spaceshipracing to the International Space Station with 2.5 tonnes of cargo on board failed today to deploy a key antenna that helps it dock with the orbiting lab, in the latest hitch in Russia's space programme.
The incident threatens to cast a new shadow over a once-vaunted programme that competed with the United States for space supremacy.
Russian and US space officials said the problem occurred just as the Progress settled into orbit after blasting off aboard a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur space station that Moscow leases from Kazakhstan.
"There was a problem with one of the antennae in the Kurs (Navigation) system," Vitaly Lopota, president of the Energia space corporation that designs the Russian spacecraft, told the Interfax news agency.
The US space agency NASA said in a tweet: "Once in orbit, an antenna used as a navigational aid on the Progress did not deploy. Russian ground controllers are assessing a fix."
But Lopota stressed that the Progress cargo ship could still dock to the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday as planned.
"Even if the antenna fails to deploy, we will still be able to get to within 200 metres (of the ISS) and perform an automatic docking," the Energia president said.
An unnamed source at mission control outside Moscow told news agencies that space officials were not particularly worried about the latest mishap to affect Russia's programme.
"Such incidents have happened before," said the official. But Russian space engineers repeatedly tried and failed to get the antenna unstuck when the Progress re-entered a stretch of its orbit in which it falls within radio contact with Mission Control.
Experts promised to keep attempting to nudge the antenna into place by sending more signals in the coming hours and possibly trying to shift the Progress vessel's rotation and angle in space.
"The antenna simply became jammed," a mission control representative told the RIA Novosti agency.
"We will continue trying different methods. We will be sending signals from ground telemetry stations and the space station, and turning the Progress around."
Russia's programme is being watched closely by other space powers because it remains the only nation capable of transporting humans to the ISS following the 2011 retirement of the US shuttle.
But the Roscosmos space agency has suffered from a string of problems in recent years that include the August 2011 explosion after lift-off of a Soyuz rocket carrying another unmanned Progress cargo craft.

Flickr Tags: Russia,Spaceship,ISS

Chris Gayle scores fastest century in cricket history

Explosive opener Chris Gayle slammed the fastest century in cricket history, reaching the triple figure in just 30 balls during the Royal Challengers Bangalore-Pune Warriors IPL clash on 23/04/2013.
Though, the milestone came in an IPL clash, and not in any international tie, Gayle's fireworks will be remembered by cricket buffs for long.
Gayle pulverised Pune attack and scored 175 not out in just 66 balls and hit 17 sixes, most in a T20 innings, and 13 boundaries in the process, to send the crowd in delirium. This was also Gayle's fourth ton in his IPL career.
Gayle blitz powered Bangalore to a T20 record 263 for five. The previous highest total by a team in this form of the game was 260 by Sri Lanka.
The Jamaican also became the highest-ever individual scorer in a T20 game surpassing Kolkata Knight Riders' Brendon McCullum who hit 158 off 73 balls against RCB.
By the time he had reached his century, 98 off Gayle's runs had come in boundaries (8 Fours and 11 Sixes). For the record, he consumed 23 balls to reach 150 from 100, which was the slowest of the three fifties, giving a fair indication of what he actually did to the clueless bowlers.
Pakistan's flamboyant batsman Shahid Afridi holds the record of fastest century in ODI (37 balls) while, Viv Richards is credited for scoring fastest ton (56 balls) in Test history.
South African Richard Richard Levi holds the record for fastest international T20 hundred. Levi had slammed 45-ball century against New Zealand in 2011 at Hamilton.
Gayle had, earlier, also scored record 50-ball 100 in T20I before Richard Levi surpassed his feat.
Gayle also beat the previous 34-ball ton Twenty20 league record set by Australia's Andrew Symonds.

Players	Balls	Team
C Gayle	30	RCB
A Symonds	34	Kent
van der Westhuizen	35	Namibia
YK Pathan	37	Rajasthan Royals
SB Styris	37	Sussex
Ahmed Shehzad	40	Barisal Burners
LL Bosman	41	Eagles
H Davids	41	Cape Cobras
BF Smith	42	Worcestershire
AC Gilchrist	42	Deccan Chargers

H-1B visa: TCS, Infosys, Wipro accused of abuse

Amidst Congressional debate on the comprehensive immigration reform, a top US Senator has accused big Indian IT companies- TCS, Infosys and Wipro - of abusing the H-1B visa system.
"There are some specific abuses of H-1B," Senator Richard Durbin, said during a Congressional hearing on immigration reform by the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, during which the lawmakers discussed threadbare the H-1B visa issues.
In fact, Senator Durbin went on to brand the top Indian IT companies as outsourcing firms. "These outsourcing firms like Infosys, Wipro, Tata and others -- Americans would be shocked to know that the H-1B visas are not going to Microsoft; they're going to these firms, largely in India, who are finding workers, engineers, who will work at low wages in the US for three years and pay a fee to Infosys or these companies," Durbin alleged.
"I think that is an abuse of what we're trying to achieve here. Most people would think, well, Microsoft needs these folks, and they'd be shocked to know that most of the H-1B visas are not going to companies like yours; they're going to these outsourcing companies," Durbin alleged.
He said this during the hearing in which two Indian Americans testified before the committee and supported the allegations of the Senator against Indian IT firms.
Brad Smith, general counsel and executive vice president, legal and corporate affairs, Microsoft, too supported the Senator on the issue.
"I personally think it's important that we both recognise the need for these firms to evolve their business model -- I've had these conversations myself with them in India -- that encourages them to focus on hiring more people in the US," he told lawmakers in response to a question.
The proposed comprehensive immigration bill if passed by the Congress and signed into law by the US President would bar companies from hiring people on H-1B visa if 50 per cent of their employees are not Americans.
The US India Business Council and Confederation of Indian Industry have opposed such a move and said that this is against the spirit of India US strategic relationship.

Subnetting Tutorial

 

In this article, we will learn how to subnet and make subnetting an easy task.

The table below summarizes the possible network numbers, the total number of each type, and the number of hosts in each Class A, B, and C network.

	Default subnet mask	Range
Class A	255.0.0.0 (/8)	1.0.0.0 – 126.255.255.255
Class B	255.255.0.0 (/16)	128.0.0.0 – 191.255.255.255
Class C	255.255.255.0 (/24)	192.0.0.0 – 223.255.255.255

Table 1 – Default subnet mask & range of each class

Class A addresses begin with a 0 bit. Therefore, all addresses from 1.0.0.0 to 126.255.255.255 belong to class A (1=0000 0001; 126 = 0111 1110).
The 0.0.0.0 address is reserved for default routing and the 127.0.0.0 address is reserved for loopback testing so they don’t belong to any class.
Class B addresses begin with a 1 bit and a 0 bit. Therefore, all addresses from 128.0.0.0 to 191.255.255.255 belong to class B (128=1000 0000; 191 = 1011 1111).
Class C addresses begin with two 1 bits and a 0 bit. Class C addresses range from 192.0.0.0 to 223.255.255.255 (192 = 1100 0000; 223 = 1101 1111).

Class D & E are used for Multicast and Research purposes and we are not allowed to subnet them so they are not mentioned here.

Note: The number behind the slash notation (/) specifies how many bits are turned on (bit 1). For example:

+ “/8″ equals “1111 1111.0000 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000″ -> 8 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ “/12″ equals “1111 1111.1111 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000″ -> 12 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ “/28″ equals “1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 0000″ -> 28 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ “/32″ equals “1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111″ -> 32 bits are turned on (bit 1) and this is also the maximum value because all bits are turned on.

The slash notation (following with a number) is equivalent to a subnet mask. If you know the slash notation you can figure out the subnet mask and vice versa. For example, “/8″ is equivalent to “255.0.0.0″; “/12″ is equivalent to “255.240.0.0″; “/28″ is equivalent to “255.255.255.240″; “/32″ is equivalent to “255.255.255.255″.

The Network & Host parts of each class by default

From the “default subnet mask” shown above, we can identify the network and host part of each class. Notice that in the subnet mask, bit 1 represents for Network part while bit 0 presents for Host part (255 equals to 1111 1111 and 0 equals to 0000 0000 in binary form).

What is “subnetting”?

When changing a number in the Network part of an IP address we will be in a different network from the previous address. For example, the IP address 11.0.0.1 belongs to class A and has a default subnet mask of 255.0.0.0; if we change the number in the first octet (a block of 8 bits, the first octet is the leftmost 8 bits) we will create a different network. For example, 12.0.0.1 is in a different network from 11.0.0.1. But if we change a number in the Host part, we are still in the same Network. For example, 11.1.0.1 is in the same network of 11.0.0.1.

The problem here is if we want to create 300 networks how can we do that? In the above example, we can only create different networks when changing the first octet so we can create a maximum of 255 networks because the first octet can only range from 1 to 255 (in fact it is much smaller because class A only range from 1 to 126). Now we have to use a technique called “subnetting” to achieve our purpose.

“Subnetting” means we borrow some bits from the Host part to add to the Network part. This allows us to have more networks than using the default subnet mask. For example, we can borrow some bits in the next octet to make the address 11.1.0.1 belong to a different network from 11.0.0.1.

How to subnet?

Do you remember that I said “in the subnet mask, bit 1 represents for Network part while bit 0 presents for Host part”? Well, this also means that we can specify how many bits we want to borrow by changing how many bit 0 to bit 1 in the subnet mask.

Let’s come back to our example with the IP 11.0.0.1, we will write all numbers in binary form to reveal what a computer really sees in an IP address.

Now you can clearly see that the subnet mask will decide which is the Network part, which is the Host part. By borrowing 8 bits, our subnet mask will be like this:

After changing the second octet of the subnet mask from all “0″ to all “1″, the Network part is now extended. Now we can create new networks by changing number in the first or second octet. This greatly increases the number of networks we can create. With this new subnet mask, IP 11.1.0.1 is in different network from IP 11.0.0.1 because “1″ in the second octet now belongs to the Network part.

So, in conclusion we “subnet” by borrowing bit “0″ in the Host portion and converting them to bit “1″. The number of borrowed bits is depended on how many networks we need.

Note: A rule of borrowing bits is we can only borrow bit 0 from the left to the right without skipping any bit 0. For example, you can borrow like this: “1111 1111. 1100 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000″ but not this: “1111 1111. 1010 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000″. In general, just make sure all your bit “1″s are successive on the left and all your bit “0″s are successive on the right.

Calculate how many networks and hosts-per-subnet

In our example, you may raise a question: “when we borrow 8 bits, how many sub-networks and how many hosts per sub-network do it create?”

Note: From now, we will call sub-networks “subnets”. This term is very popular so you should be familiar with it.

How many new subnets?

Because we can change any bit in the second octet to create a new subnet, each bit can be “0″ or “1″ so with this subnet mask (255.255.0.0) we can create 2⁸ more subnets. From here we can deduce the formula to calculate the newly created subnets. Suppose n is the number of bits we borrow:

The number of newly created subnets = 2n

In our example, we borrow 8 bits so we will have 2ⁿ = 2⁸ = 256 subnets!

How many hosts per subnet?

The number of hosts per subnet is depended on the Host part, which is indicated by the “0″ part of the subnet mask. So suppose k is the number of bits “0″ in the subnet mask. The formula to calculate the number of hosts is 2^k. But notice that with each subnet, there are two addresses we can’t assign for hosts because they are used for network address & broadcast address. Thus we must subtract the result to 2. Therefore the formula should be:

The number of hosts per subnet = 2k – 2

In our example, the number of bit “0″ in the subnet mask 255.255.0.0 (in binary form) is 16 so we will have 2^k – 2 = 2¹⁶ – 2 = 65534 hosts-per-subnet!

Some other examples

Well, practice makes perfect so we should have some more exercises to be familiar with them. But remember that this is only the beginning in your journey to become a subnetting guru :)

Exercise 1

Your company has just been assigned the network 4.0.0.0. How many subnets and hosts-per-subnet you can create with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0?

(Please try to solve by yourself before reading the solution ^^)

Solution

First of all you have to specify which class this network belongs to. According to Table 1, it belongs to class A (simply, class A ranges from 1 to 126) and its default subnet mask is 255.0.0.0. Therefore if we use a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0, it means we borrowed 16 bits (to convert from 0 to 1).

255.0.0.0 = 1111 1111.0000 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000
255.255.255.0 = 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.0000 0000

Now use our above formulas to find the answers:

The number of newly created subnets = 2¹⁶ = 65536 (with 16 is the borrowed bits)
The number of hosts per subnet = 2⁸ – 2 = 254 (with 8 is the bit “0″s left in the 255.255.255.0 subnet mask)

Exercise 2

Your company has just been assigned the network 130.0.0.0. How many subnets and hosts-per-subnet you can create with a subnet mask of 255.255.128.0?

(Please try to solve by yourself before reading the solution ^^)

Solution

130.0.0.0 belongs to class B with the default subnet mask of 255.255.0.0. But is the subnet mask of 255.255.128.0 strange? Ok, let’s write all subnet masks in binary:

255.255.128.0 = 1111 1111.1111 1111.1000 0000.0000 0000

This is a valid subnet because all bit “1″s and “0″s are successive. Comparing to the default subnet mask, we borrowed only 1 bit:

255.255.0.0 = 1111 1111.1111 1111.0000 0000.0000 0000

Therefore:

The number of newly created subnets = 2¹ = 2 (with 1 is the borrowed bits)
The number of hosts per subnet = 2¹⁵ – 2 = 32766 (with 15 is the bit “0″s left in the 255.255.128.0 subnet mask)

Exercise 3

Your company has just been assigned the network 198.23.16.0/28. How many subnets and hosts-per-subnet you can create with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.252?

(Please try to solve by yourself before reading the solution ^^)

Solution

In this exercise, your company was given a “subnetted” network from the beginning and it is not using the default subnet mask. So we will compare two subnet masks above:

/28 = 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 0000 (=255.255.255.240)
255.255.255.252 = 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1100 (= /30)

In this case we borrowed 2 bits. Therefore:

The number of newly created subnets = 2² = 4 (with 2 is the borrowed bits)
The number of hosts per subnet = 2² – 2 = 2 (with 2 is the bit “0″s left in the 255.255.255.252 subnet mask)

In this exercise I want to go a bit deeper into the subnets created. We learned there are 4 created subnets but what are they? To find out, we should write all things in binary:

Because two subnet masks (/28 & /30) only affect the 4th octet so we don’t care about the first three octets. In the 4th octet we are allowed to change 2 bits (in the green box) of the IP address to create a new subnet. So there are 4 values we can use: 00, 01, 10 & 11. After changing, we convert them back to decimal numbers. We get 4 subnets:

+ First subnet: 198.23.16.0/30 (the 4th octet is 00000000)
+ Second subnet: 198.23.16.4/30 (the 4th octet is 00000100)
+ Third subnet: 198.23.16.8/30 (the 4th octet is 00001000)
+ Fourth subnet: 198.23.16.12/30 (the 4th octet is 00001100)

So how about hosts per subnet? Please notice that all these 4 subnets are successive. So we can deduce the range of these subnets:

+ First subnet: ranges from 198.23.16.0 to 198.23.16.3
+ Second subnet: ranges from 198.23.16.4 to 198.23.16.7
+ Third subnet: ranges from 198.23.16.8 to 198.23.16.11
+ Fourth subnet: ranges from 198.23.16.12 to 198.23.16.15

Let’s analyze the first subnet which ranges from 198.23.16.0 to 198.23.16.3. Notice that all networks (and subnets) have a network address and a broadcast address. In this case, the network address is 198.23.16.0 and the broadcast address is 198.23.16.3 and they are not assignable or usable for hosts. This is the reason why we have to subtract 2 in the formula “The number of hosts per subnet = 2^k – 2″. After eliminating these 2 addresses we have 2 addresses left (which are 198.23.16.1 & 198.23.16.2) as calculated above.

Subnetting – The quick & easy way

One important thing we should notice is that a valid subnet mask must have all bit “1″s and “0″s successive, in which bit “1″s must be on the left; bit “0″s must be on the right. Therefore we only have 8 situations:

Table 2 – lists all valid subnet masks

This is a very important table to do subnet quickly! Please take some time to learn it by heart. Make sure you remember the right-most bit “1″ position (the least significant bit 1, which are in red in the above table) and their equivalent decimal values.

In most cases, this table is used to quickly convert a number from decimal to binary value without any calculation. For example, you can quickly convert the 4th octet of the subnet mask 255.255.255.248 to 11111000. Or if you are given a subnet of /29 you will know it equals to 255.255.255.248 (by thinking “/24 is the default subnet mask of class C so /29 will have the right-most bit “1″ at 5th position).

Try to practice with these questions:

+ “/28″ in binary form?
+ “255.255.224.0″ in binary form?
+ “255.192.0.0″ in slash notation form?
+ “/26″ in binary form?
+ “255.128.0.0″ in binary form?
+ “248.0.0.0″ in slash notation form?

(Please try to solve by yourself before reading the solution)

Answers:

+ /28 -> 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 0000
+ 255.255.224.0 -> 1111 1111.1111 1111.1110 0000.0000 0000
+ 255.192.0.0 -> /10
+ /26 -> 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1100 0000
+ 255.128.0.0 -> 1111 1111.1000 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000
+ 248.0.0.0 -> /5

How to find out the increment number?

The increment is the heart of subnetting; if you can find out the increment, you can find all the information to solve a subnetting question. So it is usually the first thing you must find out in a subnetting question.

The increment number is the number specifying how “big” your subnets are. Let’s take an example of the increment number! Did you remember the subnets in “Exercise 3″ in the previous part? By changing bits in the Network part, we found out 4 subnets:

+ First subnet: 198.23.16.0/30 (the 4th octet is 00000000)
+ Second subnet: 198.23.16.4/30 (the 4th octet is 00000100)
+ Third subnet: 198.23.16.8/30 (the 4th octet is 00001000)
+ Fourth subnet: 198.23.16.12/30 (the 4th octet is 00001100)

In this case the increment is 4 (in the 4th octet) because the “difference” between two successive subnets is 4 (from 0 -> 4; from 4 -> 8; from 8 -> 12)

There are 2 popular ways to find out the increment number:

1) Use the formula:

Increment = 256 – x

In which “x” is the first octet (counting from the left) which is smaller than 255 in a subnet mask. For example:

+ In a subnet mask of 255.224.0.0 -> x = 224
+ In a subnet mask of /29 -> x = 248 (because /29 = 255.255.255.248)
+ In a subnet mask of 1111 1111.1111 1100.0000 0000.0000 0000 -> x = 252

In the case you see a subnet mask of 255.255.255.255 (which is very rare in CCNA), x = 255

Note: Also remember which octet “x” belongs to because we have to plus the increment to that octet.

Now let’s solve Exercise 3 again by using this formula:

Exercise 3 one again (with the formula 256 – x):

Your company has just been assigned the network 198.23.16.0/28. How many subnets and hosts-per-subnet you can create with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.252?

The subnet mask is 255.255.255.252 -> x = 252 (x belongs to 4th octet)

Therefore the Increment = 256 – 252 = 4

The initial network 198.23.16.0/28 is also the first subnet, so:
+ The first subnet: 198.23.16.0/30
+ The second subnet: 198.23.16.4/30 because the increment is 4 so we plus the network address with it to get the next network address (0 + 4 = 4)
+ The third subnet: 198.23.16.8/30 (4 + 4 = 8)
+ The fourth subnet: 198.23.16.12/30 (8 + 4 = 12)

Note: We know there are only 4 subnets because we borrow 2 bits.

2) Learn by heart the decimal value of the rightmost bit “1″ in the subnet mask:

Another way to find the increment value is to write “x” in binary: 11110000. Consider the rightmost bit “1″, the decimal value of this bit is the increment value. In this case it equals to 16.

The table below summarizes the decimal values of bit “1″ depending on its position. To use this method, you should learn by heart this table:

Table 3 – How to find out increment based on the “least-significant” (rightmost) bit 1

Now let’s solve Exercise 3 again by using this method:

Exercise 3 one again (with the “decimal value of the rightmost bit 1″ method):

Your company has just been assigned the network 198.23.16.0/28. How many subnets and hosts-per-subnet you can create with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.252?

First use Table 2 to convert 252 to 1111 1100. The decimal value of the rightmost bit “1″ is 4 (according to Table 3) -> The Increment is 4.

After finding out the increment we can deduce 4 subnets it creates.

The initial network 198.23.16.0/28 is also the first subnet, so:
+ The first subnet: 198.23.16.0/30
+ The second subnet: 198.23.16.4/30 because the increment is 4 so we plus the network address with it to get the next network address (0 + 4 = 4)
+ The third subnet: 198.23.16.8/30 (4 + 4 = 8)
+ The fourth subnet: 198.23.16.12/30 (8 + 4 = 12)

Note: We should only choose one method to use and try to practice, practice & practice more with it. Practice until you can solve any subnetting questions within 20 seconds!

Maybe you will ask why 256 can help you find the increment. In fact, by using the formula Increment = 256 – x you are trying to separate the rightmost bit “1″ from other bits:

256 – x = 255 – x + 1

In which “255 – x” will convert all bit “0″s to bit “1″s and all bit “1″s to “0″s while “+1″ part will make our result have only one bit “1″ left. For example, if x = 240 then:

So in fact we can say two above methods are the same!

Now you learned all necessary things to become a subnetting guru. Please take some time to practice as much as possible, only practice makes perfect! Below lists some subnetting questions you can practice with:

Myanmar unrest is 'ethnic cleansing': Human Rights Watch

 

A leading international rights group on Monday accused authorities in Myanmar, including Buddhist monks, of fomenting an organized campaign of ethnic cleansing against the country's Rohingya Muslim minority that killed hundreds of people and forced 125,000 from their homes.
Human Rights Watch also described the bloody wave of violence and massacres in western Rakhine state last year as crimes against humanity, and slammed the government of President Thein Sein for failing to bring the perpetrators to justice months after mobs of Buddhists armed with machetes and homemade guns razed thousands of Muslim homes.

While state security forces sometimes intervened to protect fleeing Muslims, more often they fueled the unrest, the rights group said, either by standing by idle or directly participating in atrocities. One soldier reportedly told a Muslim man whose village was ablaze: "The only thing you can do is pray to save your lives."
The allegations, detailed in a new report by the New York-based rights group, came the same day the European Union was expected to lift all sanctions on Myanmar except an arms embargo to reward the Southeast Asian nation for its progress toward democratic rule.
Win Myaing, a government spokesman for Rakhine state, strongly rejected the allegations against state security forces, saying Human Rights Watch investigators "don't understand the situation on the ground."

He said there the government had no prior knowledge of impending attacks and deployed forces to stop the unrest. "We don't want unrest in the country because such incidents stall the democratic process and affect development," he said.
The spread of sectarian violence has posed one of the greatest challenges yet to Thein Sein's nascent government as it takes unprecedented steps to liberalize the country after almost half a century of military dictatorship. Rakhine state was shaken twice by anti-Muslim violence — first in June, then again in October. In March, unrest spread for the first time to central Myanmar, where dozens of people were killed in the city of Meikhtila.

Also Monday, BBC aired dramatic video footage showing police in Meikhtila standing by as looting, arson and multiple attacks against Muslims were underway.
One scene showed a charred man thought to be Muslim lying prostrate on the ground, badly burned but apparently still alive. As one person said, "Let him die, no water for him," several police walked past. Another scene showed a young Muslim man who had tried to flee being forced out of a thicket of green reeds and beaten by an angry crowd that included a Buddhist monk who was armed with a stick. The BBC said much of the footage was filmed by police.
In western Myanmar, the crisis goes back decades and is rooted in a highly controversial dispute over where the region's Muslim inhabitants are really from. Although many Rohingya have lived in Myanmar for generations, they are widely denigrated by majority Buddhists as foreign intruders who came from neighboring Bangladesh to steal scarce land.
The U.N. estimates their number at 800,000. The government does not count them as one of the country's 135 ethnic groups, and — like Bangladesh — denies them citizenship.
Human rights groups say racism also plays a role: Many Rohingya, who speak a distinct Bengali dialect and resemble Muslim Bangladeshis, have darker skin and are heavily discriminated against.
While the June violence was apparently triggered spontaneously by the rape and murder of a 28-year-old Buddhist woman by three Muslim men the previous month, the violence in October "was clearly much more organized and planned," Human Rights Watch said.
The report detailed how officials from the powerful Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, as well as Buddhist monks, publically vilified the Rohingya after the June riots. They encouraged segregation, the boycott of Muslim businesses, and described the Rohingya living among them as a threat to the state. "These groups and others issued numerous anti-Rohingya pamphlets and public statements, explicitly or implicitly denying the existence of the Rohingya ethnicity, demonizing them, and calling for their removal from the country, at times using the phrase `ethnic cleansing,"' Human Rights Watch said. "The statements frequently were released in connection with organized meetings and in full view of local, state, and national authorities who raised no concerns." Then, starting October 23, ethnic Rakhine mobs attacked Muslim communities in nine townships over the course of a single week, forcing tens of thousands to flee. The deadliest attack occurred that day in the village of Yan Thei, where Buddhist mobs armed with machetes killed 70 Rohingya, including 28 children. "Despite advance warning of the attack, only a small number of riot police, local police, and army soldiers were on duty to provide security, but they assisted the killings by disarming the Rohingya of their sticks and other rudimentary weapons they carried to defend themselves," the report said. Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights watch, said Myanmar's "government engaged in a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya that continues today through the denial of aid and restrictions on movement."
"The government needs to put an immediate stop to the abuses and hold the perpetrators accountable or it will be responsible for further violence," he said

Delhi Police chief Neeraj Kumar has links with Navy war room accused, claims AAP

Demanding his ouster in the wake of rape of a five-year-old girl, Aam Aadmi Party on Monday alleged Delhi Policecommissioner Neeraj Kumar has links with Navy war room case accused Abhishek Verma, a charge vehemently denied by the police chief who said he is "initiating" legal action.

Kumar rubbished the allegations as "baseless, unfounded and ludicrous" with the sole intention of "besmirching my personal integrity, reputation and competence" and said necessary legal action is being initiated against AAP leader Prashant Bhushan in this regard.

Addressing a press conference on a day when angry protesters, including those belonging to AAP, were demanding Kumar's removal from the post, Bhushan claimed Verma's close associate Edmonds Allen had written to government earlier that Kumar has links with the alleged arms dealer.
Reacting to the allegations, Kumar said, "Prashant Bhushan has made several false, scurrilous and defamatory allegations against me, which are baseless, unfounded and ludicrous, with the sole intention of besmirching my personal integrity, reputation and competence."

"These allegations are at the behest of persons who have been arrayed as accused in investigations conducted under my supervision during my tenure in the CBI," he said in a statement.
Kumar said he had already issued a legal notice to retired bureaucrat M G Devasahayam, who had raised similar allegations. Devasahayam's writ petition in this regard was entertained by the Delhi high court.

"Prashant Bhushan is now acting at the behest of the same vested interests, i.e, accused persons and particularly those whom I had investigated during my tenure at the CBI and who have thereafter filed several petitions against me, as I was not willing to bend or compromise in his case," he claimed.
Kumar said he is a highly decorated officer and have received medals from President, commendations from various state governments, successive Directors of CBI in recognition of meritorious service.

"The allegations levelled by Bhushan are clearly with oblique motives and are being made for vested political interests. Necessary legal action is being initiated against him in this regard.
"I will continue, at all times, to put the interests of the country, its citizens and of the Police Force above my own interests and those of my family," Kumar said.
Referring to the security cover provided to business tycoon Mukesh Ambani, Kejriwal said the government is more interested in providing such facility to these people forgetting that it is the common man who badly needs it.
Bushan also described the action against eight persons following the death of Delhi Police Head Constable Subhash Tomar as an attempt by the government to malign.

Current H-1B visa system incredibly disruptive, Microsoft tells US lawmakers

 

The current H-1B visa system, the numerical limit of which was set by the Congress in 1990, is incredibly disruptive to business planning and operations of US employers, software giant Microsoft told lawmakers on Monday.

The company came out in support of the comprehensive immigration reform which recommends substantial increase in the H-1B visas.
Referring to the fact that the US received 40,000 more applications for H-1B visas this year and the cap was reached in the first week itself, Brad Smith, general counsel and executive vice-president, legal and corporate affairs, Microsoft Corp, told a congressional hearing that running out of H-1B visas this quickly has significant consequences for the economy.

He said: "This year, employers are faced with a scenario in which one-third of the H-1B petitions that they submitted will be rejected in the H-1B lottery.
"These are 40,000 positions that will remain unfilled despite the fact that qualified candidates have been identified and job offers have been extended after a careful, intensive recruiting process in a very competitive market for talent. This is incredibly disruptive to the business planning and operations of US employers."
In his prepared statement, Smith said Microsoft entered this year's H-1B cap season knowing that "we could not file H-B petitions for 250 candidates we had identified for job offers" simply because the cap would be exhausted in the first week, a full two months before their graduation dates in June.
"Among the H-1B petitions we were able to file this year, we will likely have more than 200 additional candidates to whom job offers were extended, but who will not be selected in the H-1B lottery. When this happens, we don't simply rescind these offers of employment," he said.

Smith added: "We begin the process of identifying alternative options for employing these talented individuals at one of our subsidiaries abroad.
"The inability to employ these individuals in the US means the loss of work that was intended to be performed in the US and along with it, the output and productivity our business groups were planning, not to mention the potential tax revenues and economic activity associated with the salaries for those jobs."
He said these immigration challenges also have very real consequences for the talent US is trying to attract.

Smith said some potential hires are unwilling to jump over all of the hurdles presented by the H-1B cap and will simply walk away from the offer of employment in the US, opting to instead pursue alternative options in their home countries.
"A few specific examples from our own experience will help illustrate the tangible impact to these individuals. Last year, we were unable to file an H-1B petition for one of our candidates before the H-1B cap was exhausted due to his graduation date.

"The inability to start working for us in the US was incredibly distressing to him, not only because of the delay in staring a job he was excited for, but also because of an uncertain political situation in his home country," he said.
The company has filed an H-1B petition for him under this year's H-1B cap, a year and a half after his original offer of employment was extended, Smith said.
In the meantime, he continues to wait on the sidelines for the approval of the petition, he added.
"This year, we extended offers of employment to two candidates who happen to be engaged to one another. Again, due to the timing of graduation dates, only one of them could have an H-1B petition filed before the cap was reached," Smith said.
This couple is now confronted with the reality of being separated in order for one to pursue employment with Microsoft in the US while the other seeks options abroad, he added.
Smith said: "Without reform to address these unnecessary impediments in the H-1B program, these kinds of challenges will deter future high skilled immigrants from investing their skills in our economy."

Israel,Turkey discuss compensation for flotilla raid victims

Turkish and Israeli officials sat down at the negotiating table for the first time since Israel's prime minister apologized a month ago for a deadly 2010 raid on a Gaza-bound aid ship that left eight Turks and an American dead.

The one-day talks were held in the Turkish capital, Ankara, on Monday. Diplomats were expected to discuss Israeli compensation for the families of the victims. Further talks are likely, although an exact timetable has not been released.

Relations between Israel and Turkey, once close military and economic partners in the region, ruptured after the botched raid of the ship Mavi Marmara nearly three years ago.

Turkey withdrew its ambassador from Israel. Since then, Ankara has demanded a formal apology, compensation for victims, normalization of ties between the two countries, and that Israel lift its blockade on the Palestinian territory of Gaza.

During a visit to the region last month, President Barack Obama succeeded in brokering a critical phone call between the leaders of Turkey and Israel, two key American allies in the turbulent Middle East. During the call, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accepted an apology from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"In light of Israel's investigation into the incident, which pointed out several operational mistakes, Prime Minister Netanyahu expressed Israel's apology to the Turkish people for any mistakes that might have led to loss of life or injury and agreed to conclude an agreement on compensation/non-liability," the Israeli government said last month.

In its own official statement, Turkey said the two leaders "agreed to work together to improve the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories."

There are still potential obstacles to a normalization of relations between the two governments.

Turkey has been prosecuting four Israeli military commanders in absentia in connection to the Mavi Marmara raid. Also, families of the victims have said a compensation settlement will not stop their legal process against the soldiers until Israel ends its blockade on Gaza.

"We see the negotiations for compensation for those killed as disrespectful when no steps have been taken to ensure the rights of those oppressed in the Palestinian lands and while the siege of our Palestinian brothers continues," said a statement from the families.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas met in Istanbul for talks on regional issues, according to a statement by the Office of the Turkish President.

Turkey became the first country to send an ambassador to Palestine last month, according to the statement.

Turkey and Israel have been two pro-Western political, economic, and military linchpins in the Middle East, and their falling out over the 2010 flotilla raid has hurt initiatives to tackle problems in the region, such as the Syrian civil war and tensions relating to Iran's nuclear aspirations.

The Free Gaza Movement organized the flotilla to bring goods into Gaza, and to raise awareness over what it calls Israel's "illegal siege on Gaza." Israeli commandos raided one of the ships, the Mavi Marmara, because it violated the Israeli-imposed blockade on the Palestinian territory.

Israel imposed the blockade on Gaza in 2007 after the militant group Hamas seized control of the Palestinian territory. It is designed to stop the smuggling of arms into the territory, the Israeli government says.

But activists say Israel's embargo of goods into Gaza from land and sea punishes civilians in the tiny and densely populated strip of land along the Mediterranean coast.

Newyork City Proposes Raising Minimum Age for Cigarette Purchases to 21

Young New Yorkers would not be able to buy cigarettes until they were 21, up from the current 18, under a proposal advanced Monday by Dr. Thomas A. Farley, the city’s health commissioner, and Christine C. Quinn, the City Council speaker.

The proposal, which would give New York the highest smoking age in the country among major cities, is the latest effort in a long campaign to limit smoking that began soon after Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg took office, with bans on smoking in restaurants and bars, and expanding more recently to bans at parks, beaches, plazas and other public places.

The new proposal would make the age for buying cigarettes the same as for buying liquor. It was not immediately clear whether Dr. Farley’s proposal would make it illegal for people under 21 to possess cigarettes, as well as to buy them.

Surveys suggest youth smoking has been declining in New York City, perhaps, some analysts say, because young people have been influenced by the public health campaigns and never taken it up to begin with.

In March, Mr. Bloomberg proposed legislation through the City Council that he said would make New York the first city in the nation to force retailers to keep tobacco products hidden where customers could not see them. That proposal, he said, was meant to shield children from tobacco marketing and keep people from buying cigarettes on impulse.

But the latest proposals have also come amid some recent defeats in Mr. Bloomberg’s public health campaigns, like a reversal in court of the city’s policy of putting graphic antismoking advertisements where cigarettes are sold, and another court reversal of a highly anticipated city ban on selling super-size sugary drinks at movie theaters, sports arenas and other establishments.

The smoking age is 18 in most of the country, but 19 in four states: Alabama, Alaska, New Jersey and Utah. Some counties have also adopted 19, including Nassau and Suffolk Counties on Long Island. The Boston suburb of Needham, Mass., also has raised its smoking age to 21.

(Sheelagh McNeill contributed research.)

Why topless protesters will hound Islamic leaders

 

For the past five years now, we here at the international women's movement Femen have been waging an active campaign of resistance to the patriarchy in various corners of the world.

We have been bringing the world the simple idea of women's liberation by means of sexual emancipation as expressed in highly visible acts of political protest. We believe that the enslavement of women began with the enslavement of their sexuality, so we therefore consider it legitimate to use their liberated sexuality as a symbol of women's worldwide liberation.

We divide the patriarchy confronting us into three basic parts. First, dictatorship, as a tool for enslaving women. For this reason we are a democratic movement.

The second part of the system consists of religion and the church, which have overseen the spiritual enslavement of women. For this reason Femen is an atheistic group motivated by secularism and humanism.

The third element of the patriarchy is the sex industry, which has been responsible for women's sexual servitude and is in fact the most ancient form of female slavery. For this reason, then, Femen sees sexuality as the organon and canon of women's freedom. Hence, our three basic postulates are democracy, atheism, and sexuality.

From what we have related above, naturally the most hated institutions are those that stand for one of these three things or a mixture of them. The most obvious illustration of the patriarchy is Islamic theocracy, a symbiosis of political and religious dictatorship.

In theocratic states, the position of women is horrifying and hopeless. We direct our fiercest criticism to such countries, and work in that part of the world is what most occupies our minds.

A clear example of the "Shariazation" under way in the Middle East and North Africa is what our activist Amina Tyler has gone through. For having published in Facebook topless pictures of herself with "F*** Your Morals" written on her body, Amina suffered severe criticism and death threats, and was kidnapped, beaten, and subjected to humiliating treatment.

This young woman claims her own family took her far outside the confines of the city in which she lived to spend several weeks in a village unknown to her. There, shut up inside a house, she underwent a forced "Islamization:" they made her read the Quran and took her every day to see an imam. Amina's family also declared her insane and compelled her to ingest large doses of medication.

"Because I was taking so many pills, I was sleeping all the time," Amina told me. "And once I woke up, I understood that I didn't remember anything."

Amina finally managed to escape. A few hours after Femen activists attacked the president of Tunisia shouting "Where is Amina?" I received a phone call: "Inna, this is Amina speaking! I've escaped from my family!"

After a long conversation about what she had gone through during her period of forced isolation, I asked her whether she thought it best for her safety to leave Tunisia for a while. Amina answered that she would not leave Tunisia until she had carried out a topless protest with other Tunisian girls who had already established contact with her.

Our understanding of Islamism, according to what we have learned fighting against it, tells us that our criticism of it is valid and holds out much hope for the future.

At the heart of Islamism lies the enslavement of women based on control over their sexuality. The hijab is at the same time both a symbol and a tool of this enslavement.

A mass sexual protest inspired by our example will serve as the first step toward women's recovering their own nature and will be a turning point, sparking the dissolution of the Sharia and the return, to women, of control over the conditions of her existence, from the sexual to the political.

I hereby both promise and threaten to deploy an entire network of Femen activists in Arab countries. We will hound Islamic leaders across the globe, subjecting them to desolating criticism. We intend to hound spiritual leaders who are personally responsible for mistreating women.

A million Aminas will arise! And freedom, at last, will dawn!

Coming soon: blood test that tells how long you will live!

 

Soon, it will cost just 435 pounds to keep tab on your ageing process. Scientists have developed a blood test, which can show the speed of ageing and give an estimate of how long a person is going to live.

The test results may be vital to life-insurance companies offering medical cover that depends on a person's lifetime risk of falling seriously ill or dying prematurely.

The controversial blood test is to go on sale to the general public inBritain later this year.

The test has been designed to measure vital structures on the tips of a person's chromosomes called telomeres, which scientists believe are one of the most important and accurate indicators of the speed at which a person is ageing.

According to scientists, the test will be able to tell whether a person's "biological age", as measured by the length of their telomeres is older or younger than their actual chronological age.

"We know that people who are born with shorter telomeres than normal also have a shorter lifespan. We know that shorter telomeres can cause a shorter lifespan," the Independent quoted Maria Blasco, of the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre in Madrid as saying.

"But we don't know whether longer telomeres are going to give you a longer lifespan. That's not really known in humans," she added.

Scientists are hopeful that the test could prove to be a breakthrough in satiating the curiosity of the people regarding their mortality, who can accordingly, plan their life.

However, scientists do not yet believe that the test predictions can be narrowed down to calculate the exact number of months and years a person has yet to live. (ANI)

Russia counters U.S. Missile Defence

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned the United States that its plans to deploy a unilateral missile defence in Europe will trigger a new Cold War arms race.

If the U.S. rejects the Russian offer to cooperate on missile defences for Europe, Moscow would be forced to deploy new first-strike nuclear missiles and tear up the bilateral Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (Start) the two countries signed last year, Mr. Medvedev told a rare press conference in Moscow on Wednesday.

“If we fail to agree we would have to take retaliatory measures… [and] speed up the development of the offensive potential of our nuclear capabilities. This would be a very bad scenario that would throw us back into the Cold War era,” said Mr. Medvedev.

The Russian leader stressed that missile defences was an “exceptionally important issue” for Russia.

“It could wreck all that we have achieved in recent years, including the momentous Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty,” said Mr. Medvedev.

He was speaking a day after a top Russian missile commander announced the deployment of new-generation long-range nuclear missiles capable of defeating any current or future missile defences.

The RS-24 Yars multiple-warhead long-range mobile missile has the capacity to “penetrate highly protective targets” while being invulnerable to missile interceptors being developed by the U.S., Strategic Missile Forces Commander Lieutenant-General Sergei Karakayev told a media briefing in Moscow.

“The new missile is unassailable on the ground thanks to its mobility and will pierce any missile defences that can be developed over the next 15-20 years,” said the commander.

The solid-fuel RS-24 has more powerful engines, reduced weight and can perform sharp manoeuvres during the boost phase to dodge missile interceptors.

The missile's multiple warheads have a greatly reduced radar imprint thanks to a new heat-absorbing coating and are protected by active jammers and new heavy decoys that are impossible to distinguish from the warheads. During the final phase of the flight after re-entry into the atmosphere, the warheads evade interception thanks to high speed and ability to manoeuvre, said Lieutenant-General Karakayev.

The Russian missile is effectively a first-strike weapon that could trigger a new missile race between the former Cold War adversaries.

MOSCOW, May 18, 2011